Eugene Daily News » Beer and Codinghttp://eugenedailynews.com
Always Local - Always FreeSun, 02 Aug 2015 17:57:28 +0000en-UShourly1http://wordpress.org/?v=4.2.3Adventures in Homebrew: Rye IPA & Dark, Hoppy Rye Alehttp://eugenedailynews.com/2011/06/adventures-in-homebrew-rye-ipa-dark-hoppy-rye-ale/
http://eugenedailynews.com/2011/06/adventures-in-homebrew-rye-ipa-dark-hoppy-rye-ale/#commentsSun, 05 Jun 2011 22:44:33 +0000http://eugenedailynews.com/?p=7131Adventures in Homebrew: Rye IPA & Dark, Hoppy Rye Ale I have been swamped at work lately and, as a result, the ol’ blog has been feeling a might neglected. You’ll have to trust me that this is the lesser of two evils though. And though most of my waking hours have been spent slashing through decade-old C Basic code, I have been able to […]]]>

Adventures in Homebrew: Rye IPA & Dark, Hoppy Rye Ale

I have been swamped at work lately and, as a result, the ol’ blog has been feeling a might neglected. You’ll have to trust me that this is the lesser of two evils though. And though most of my waking hours have been spent slashing through decade-old C Basic code, I have been able to sneak in a couple brew sessions.

I’ve been on a rye kick for a while now, so when the local market ran it for $.70/lb, I picked up a sizeable amount of the spicy grain. Not surprisingly, it has since worked its way into both of my recent brews. The first is a big NW IPA, judiciously hopped with Chinook and Columbus.

The Rye IPA was the fifth beer I fermented with the same culture of Wyeast 1469 (Timothy Taylor); Oatmeal Stout -> English Bitter -> English Brown -> Heather Ale -> Rye IPA. I had planned on dumping the yeast after my Heather Ale finished, but it looked so damn healthy in the bottom of the fermenter that I couldn’t help but feed one more time. Initially, this was going to be a British IPA, chock-full of Fuggles goodness. But after looking over my brew logs I realized that a straightforward American IPA had yet to grace my kettle. I went rummaging through the freezer for some big, pungent NW hops and emerged with several ounces of Chinook and Columbus.

For this beer, I made a couple adjustments to my usual brewing process. I have been having a problem with my beers all finishing very dry. This wasn’t much of an issue with my Belgian’s, but it has left my English brews feeling a little thin. In an attempt to remedy this, mash temperature has been slowly creeping up with each consecutive brew. My Heather Ale, for example, which was mashed at 155º(F) and contained around 16% caramel malts, still felt a little too light in body.

My next thought was to change my mash out procedure. During most brews, my small mash tun is nearly full. To mash out, I fill the tun to the brim with boiling water. This is usually far less that the amount required to push the temperature above 170º(F) and stop the enzymatic activity. Since I don’t start heating the wort until the sparge is complete, the collected runnings sit in the 160-164º(F) range, where activity could potentially continue. For this brew, I mashed very thick, ~.8qt/lb. This afforded me enough room in the tun to bring the mash out temperature to 172º(F) with a larger infusion of boiling water.

This seems to have down the trick. At kegging (after a 3 week primary and 1 week secondary), the gravity had stabilized at 1.016. The beer feels nicely round and has retained a subtle malty sweetness. By avoiding caramel malts entirely, the hops shine through; bright, clean and spicy. The only downside to the brew is that even at 12% of the grainbill, the rye is almost completely hidden behind the hops. So much so that I probably would not have detected it had I not knew it was there. If I were to re-brew, I would sub out the sugar for additional rye, bringing it up to 20%.

The name Eye-P-A of the Storm was coined by Jesse and is a reference to the brewday. When we started heating the strike water, the sun was out, the sky was clear and I was feeling

guilty about not mowing the lawn. By the time we were mashing in, the sky was black, the rain was coming down sideways and we were forced to construct a windbreak from spare lumber and bricks to keep the propane burner from going out. Almost as if the gods knew I had something else I was supposed to be doing.

Originally, I had intended to use Weyermann Chocolate Rye, which the Maltster has listed at 180-300L on its website. When I arrived at the LHBS, the grain was marked at 400-500L. I felt this would be too roasty for the beer I had imagined, so I went instead with Crisp Pale Chocolate, the roasted malt with the color closest to my original recipe.

The Falconer’s Flight hop blend was also an on-the-spot substitution. Since enjoying a couple pints of Union Dew, from a firkin Ted brought down from the mountain, I’ve been set on brewing something with lemony Sorachi Ace hops. Unfortunately, none were to be had come brewday, so I reached into the depths of my memory bank and pulled out a little factoid about Falconer’s Flight. The blend contains Sorachi Ace, along with Simcoe, Citra and a slew of other recently fashionable hops. Being the closest thing at my disposal, I picked up a few ounces and continued on my deviated path.

The odd chose of yeast is yet another example of a last minute change. The beer was going to be about 40% flaked rye, with a starting gravity north of 1.070. Something like an Imperial Roggen-wit for those of you inclined to classify everything. Wyeast 3333 seemed like a great choice for such a recipe, with its restrained banana flavor and high flocculation. Too bad I forgot to pick up rice hulls, forcing me to abandon a large percentage of the flaked rye.

Despite the recipe setbacks, the brewday went great. In fact, it was the first time I’ve brewed rain-free this year. And following my “if it ain’t broke, use a bigger hammer” philosophy, I abandoned all that I learned brewing the Rye IPA, I opted for a decoction mash. Unlike a traditional decoction schedule, I used the process only to take the mash from saccrification rest to mash out. One-third of the mash was pulled after 45 minutes and quickly brought to a boil. After ten minutes, the boiling mash was returned to the tun, bringing the main mash up to 172º(F).

The decoction worked perfectly and I ended up with a full 5 gallons of 1.056 wort in the fermenter, a few points higher than anticipated. The German Wheat Yeast tore through the wort in about 4 days, taking the beer down to 1.018. This is a few points higher than expected, probably the result of too much caramelization during the decoction or too long sitting at 172º(F) while I cleaned the kettle and heated sparge water. I fermented at 62º(F), an attempt to coax out the clove flavor while keeping the banana esters in check.

The beer has been in the tank for about two week, but I haven’t quite decided what to do with it. From early samples, I’m not happy with the hops. The bitterness is quite bracing and and the hop flavor is muddled. I have a feeling I should have moved the 15 minute addition to flameout. I still have an ounce or two of the blend, so dry-hopping is an option, but I’m still vacillating over whether or not the beer can handle it. Anyone out there with experience using the blend care to chime in?

In any case, the beer will definitely be drinkable, and I’m sure the harshness will subside given time. I am planning to take another run at the recipe as initially intended. Basically, the chocolate malt will be switched to .25 lb of Chocolate Rye, the flaked rye increased to 5.75 lbs. and the hops switched for Sorachi Ace.

]]>http://eugenedailynews.com/2011/06/adventures-in-homebrew-rye-ipa-dark-hoppy-rye-ale/feed/0Adventures in Homebrew: Belgian Bitterhttp://eugenedailynews.com/2011/05/adventures-in-homebrew-belgian-bitter/
http://eugenedailynews.com/2011/05/adventures-in-homebrew-belgian-bitter/#commentsSat, 21 May 2011 18:26:38 +0000http://eugenedailynews.com/?p=7129Adventures in Homebrew: Belgian Bitter by kevin@beerandcoding.com Somehow, amid the indulgences of Eugene Beer Week, I managed to squeeze a homebrew session into the first week of May. After several months working with the Timothy Taylor (Wyeast 1469) yeast, followed by a quick stint with a German Wheat (Wyeast 3333) strain, I decided to return to brewing Belgians. More specifically, I revisited the first […]]]>

Adventures in Homebrew: Belgian Bitterby kevin@beerandcoding.com

Somehow, amid the indulgences of Eugene Beer Week, I managed to squeeze a homebrew session into the first week of May. After several months working with the Timothy Taylor (Wyeast 1469) yeast, followed by a quick stint with a German Wheat (Wyeast 3333) strain, I decided to return to brewing Belgians. More specifically, I revisited the first beer I ever brewed, a Belgian-style IPA.

Now, being my first brew, my Belgian IPA had several fatal flaws. First, it contained an obscene amount of carapils, crystal and biscuit malts, about 10% of each. And not fully understanding how hop additions affect beer flavor and aroma, I didn’t include a flameout or dry-hop charge. Equally ignorant on the topic of yeast, I let the beer sail into low 80º’s for the better part of its active fermentation. Welcome to bubblegum city. Still, when I cracked open the first bottle, a plastic 20oz Pepsi bottle mind you, I thought I’d created magic. Oh how quickly we evolve.

A little older and hopefully a little wiser, this time around, I wanted something much cleaner, much drier and much hoppier. While the first Belgian IPA was an attempt at Stone Cali-Belgique, Urthel Hop-It, Auchouffe Houblon and fresh De Ranke XX Bitter were all inspiration for this brew.

A pretty simple grain bill, mashed low to create a very fermentable wort. A long boil was used to retain a touch of sweetness and give a dash of color to the extremely pale ale. For yeast, I had thought about pulling the Duvel culture from my original Belgian IPA back out of the bank, but decided instead to give the Achouffe (Wyeast 3522) strain a try. From my experience with Achouffe beers, this yeast provides a nice spiciness, along with some faint fruit notes.

To keep the fruitiness in check, I fermented near the bottom of the strain’s temperature range, at 66º(F). The yeast took off quickly, but stalled around 1.030. and fell out of suspension. I ended up having to raise to temperature a few degrees and rouse the fermenter a time or two to get the beer to finish out. At 18 days in the tank, the gravity is now down to 1.012. Using my slightly higher than estimated starting gravity of 1.058, this puts the beer at 5.9% ABV and the yeast attenuation at 80%.

I am still trying to decide whether or not to dry-hop this beer. From the samples I’ve pulled, the Saaz flavor is coming through nicely, but I’d like a little more of it in the aroma. On the other hand, the low fermentation temperature resulted in a soft Belgian yeast character and I’d hate to mask it completely with another shot of hops. I suppose I still have some time to make a decision. I am out of free kegs at the moment and the beer fridge is completely full of bottles. This one will be sitting in a fermenter until something clears up. Yeah, I know, tough situation to be in.

]]>http://eugenedailynews.com/2011/05/adventures-in-homebrew-belgian-bitter/feed/0Eugene Beer Week Wrap Uphttp://eugenedailynews.com/2011/05/eugene-beer-week-wrap-up/
http://eugenedailynews.com/2011/05/eugene-beer-week-wrap-up/#commentsFri, 20 May 2011 21:44:22 +0000http://eugenedailynews.com/?p=7127Eugene Beer Week Wrap Up – from kevin@beerandcoding.com Now that my brain and liver have both had a few days to recover, I thought I would take some time to reflect on Eugene’s Inaugural Beer Week. First off, it was a hell of a lot of fun. It is a rare occasion that two beer events […]]]>

Now that my brain and liver have both had a few days to recover, I thought I would take some time to reflect on Eugene’s Inaugural Beer Week. First off, it was a hell of a lot of fun. It is a rare occasion that two beer events occur in the same week in Eugene. Multiple events in a single day was not something my beercipital lobe was ready to process. While I managed to make my way to a couple beer releases, the Brewpublic Wine Barrel Aged Fest, the Hellshire release and the Sasquatch Brewfest, I regretfully missed out on some other great events like Oakshire dinner at Sfizio, Full Sail’s John Harris at The Bier Stein, beer cocktails at Izakaya Meiji Company and the beer tasting lessons with Jamie Floyd at Ninkasi. Utter madness.

I also had to skip the blind IPA flight at The Bier Stein, where ECB’s 200 Meter bested a field of local IPAs which included Steelhead’s Bombay Bomber, Oakshire/Bier Stein’s Missing Link (People’s Choice), Hop Valley’s Alphadelic, Oakshire’s Watershed and Ninkasi’s Total Domination. Not to worry though, the swirling maelstrom of fermented goodness that was Eugene Beer Week quickly caught up with me.

At the Brewpublic Wine Barrel Aged Fest, my two favorite beers were the largest and smallest in attendance. Tipping the scale at 13% ABV, Gilgamesh’s Abandon, an Imperial Cranberry Ale, fermented with Saison yeast and aged in Pinot Port barrels, was completely nuts. The beer (or wine?) was served still (uncarbonated) and at room temperature. A mix of tart, sweet, bitter and salty, followed by a deep burn. If they somehow figured out how to squeeze umami in there, they could bottle it as an experience in taste nirvana. Speaking of which, Abandon will be getting the bottle treatment, packaged still and sold for around $25.

While Abandon thoroughly assaulted my senses, well, with abandon, Flat Tail’s Corvaller Weisse delivered a precise, lactic-soaked punch to the face. Dave’s take on a Berliner was split into two batches, half fermented with Kolsch yeast and Lacto, half with 100% Brett, both aged in French oak Pinot barrels. The two beers were then blended back together to form an immensely sour, slightly funky, vinous, 3.5% knock-out. This was hands-down my favorite beer of the week.

Well, hands-down might be a bit of a stretch. Bourbon Lickspigot Barleywine, one of Flat Tail’s Sasquatch offerings, was damn fine too. Vanilla and Oak upfront, with a rolling bourbon-twinged heat. I probably should have started off the brewfest with something other than this 13% monster, as it severely hampered my palette for the next several beers. This was not too much of an issue though, as the next several brews I sampled all featured the Falconer’s Flight hop blend from Hop Union, which I am completely disenchanted with. But that is a topic for another day.

Sasquatch itself felt a little more disorganized than usual, or maybe hectic is a better word. Many of the beers listed in the program were nowhere to be found, while several taps on the floor were void of label or description. Despite this, I still stumbled across several tasty libations, including the aforementioned Bourbon Lickspigot Barleywine, Fort George’s Coffee Girl Stout and Maritime Pacific’s Dry-hopped Portage Bay Pilsner. Gilgamesh’s Orgamine, a Hef brewed with Jasmine tea, would have probably gone over better had I not spent the last week drinking Frederic’s Lost Arm, which is a much more elegant fusion.

Sasquatch was a great way to close out a busy Eugene Beer Week, but this year, the real fun occurred in the wee hours before the festival, at Oakshire’s Hellshire I release. After overhearing much strategizing, involving tents and large recreational vehicles, I decided to show up early to the Hellshire release, to document the die-hards. I was shocked when I strolled up at 7:00 a.m. and found that I was the first in line. Within a couple minutes, I was joined by a few compatriots and we started the mist-ridden wait.

When the gates opened at 8:00 a.m. our small tribe had grown to 50+. And for my ability to wake up early and navigate an automobile, I got to purchase the first bottle of Hellshire I and was awarded a swanky baby-blue Line Dry Rye tee shirt. After completing the business portion of my visit, I got down to the pleasure part, which included many trips to the taps, where all manner of Oakshire rarity was being dispensed. Ambient Noise, Imperial Overcast and Bourbon Kilted Badger (on Nitro) were all flowing. As was the last 1/6 barrel of Heart Shaped Box, the Valentine’s Day Bourbon barrel Stout, brewed with cherries, espresso, cocoa nibs and vanilla beans.

I had a chance to talk to several people from Portland and even a few from Seattle, who all endured a dark-filled drive for their chance at liquid gold. Most people squirreled their new-found treasure away in their cars, but a few brave (or impatient) souls cracked open their bottles onsite and got right down to business. Mike Coplin was one such individual, who, doing his best Jesus impersonation, handed out sample after sample from what seemed like a bottomless bomber.

Speaking of Mike, the man is due a raucous round of applause for his efforts in getting the Beer Week ball rolling and keeping the whole thing so organized. When he first announced the plans for Eugene Beer Week, I was a little worried that participation would fail to stretch beyond 16 Tons, The Bier Stein, Ninkasi and Oakshire. Mass involvement is one of those critical unknowns that can make or break an event like this. I was quite relieved as the weeks progressed and more and more breweries, restaurants and stores signed on. In all, about 40 events were held, spanning 7 days and 14 venues. A great Freshman effort and I can’t wait to see what will develop next year.

]]>http://eugenedailynews.com/2011/05/eugene-beer-week-wrap-up/feed/0Craft Beer Drinkers, Meet Your New Top 50http://eugenedailynews.com/2011/04/craft-beer-drinkers-meet-your-new-top-50/
http://eugenedailynews.com/2011/04/craft-beer-drinkers-meet-your-new-top-50/#commentsTue, 19 Apr 2011 03:41:09 +0000http://eugenedailynews.com/?p=5781Oregon fields 5 "craft" breweries in the current top 50. Congratulations to Ninkasi for making the list.]]>

Craft Beer Drinkers, Meet Your New Top 50
The Brewers Association has released its annual list of the Top 50 Craft Brewing Companies by sales volume.

Top 50 Craft Breweries – 2010

Rank

Brewing Company

City

State

1

Boston Beer Co.

Boston

MA

2

Sierra Nevada Brewing Co.

Chico

CA

3

New Belgium Brewing Co.

Fort Collins

CO

4

Spoetzl Brewery*

Shiner

TX

5

Deschutes Brewery

Bend

OR

6

Independent Brewers United (IBU)*

Burlington

VT

7

Matt Brewing Co.

Utica

NY

8

Bell’s Brewery, Inc.

Galesburg

MI

9

Harpoon Brewery

Boston

MA

10

Boulevard Brewing Co.

Kansas City

MO

11

Dogfish Head Craft Brewery

Milton

DE

12

Alaskan Brewing and Bottling Co.

Juneau

AK

13

Long Trail Brewing Co.

Bridgewater Corners

VT

14

Stone Brewing Co.

Escondido

CA

15

Abita Brewing Co.

Abita Springs

LA

16

Brooklyn Brewery

Brooklyn

NY

17

Lagunitas Brewing Co.

Petaluma

CA

18

Full Sail Brewing Co.

Hood River

OR

19

Shipyard Brewing Co.

Portland

ME

20

Summit Brewing Co.

St. Paul

MN

21

New Glarus Brewing Co.

New Glarus

WI

22

Great Lakes Brewing Co.

Cleveland

OH

23

Anchor Brewing Co.

San Francisco

CA

24

Kona Brewery LLC*

Kailua-Kona

HI

25

Rogue Ales

Newport

OR

26

Firestone Walker Brewing Co.

Paso Robles

CA

27

Sweetwater Brewing Co.

Atlanta

GA

28

Flying Dog Brewery

Frederick

MD

29

Victory Brewing Co.

Downingtown

PA

30

Gordon Biersch Brewing Co.

San Jose

CA

31

BJ’s Chicago Pizza & Brewery, Inc.

Huntington Beach

CA

32

Stevens Point Brewery Co.

Stevens Point

WI

33

Odell Brewing Co.

Fort Collins

CO

34

BridgePort Brewing Co.*

Portland

OR

35

Rock Bottom Brewery Restaurants

Louisville

CO

36

Oskar Blues Brewery

Longmont

CO

37

Blue Point Brewing Co.

Patchogue

NY

38

Lost Coast Brewery and Cafe

Eureka

CA

39

Big Sky Brewing Co.

Missoula

MT

40

North Coast Brewing Co. Inc.

Fort Bragg

CA

41

Mac and Jack’s Brewery

Redmond

WA

42

The Saint Louis Brewery, Inc.

Maplewood

MO

43

Bear Republic Brewing Co.

Cloverdale

CA

44

Karl Strauss Brewing Co.

San Diego

CA

45

Breckenridge Brewery

Denver

CO

46

Utah Brewers Cooperative

Salt Lake City

UT

47

Gordon Biersch Brewery Restaurants

Chattanooga

TN

48

Saint Arnold Brewing Co.

Houston

TX

49

Real Ale Brewing Co.

Blanco

TX

50

Ninkasi Brewing Co.

Eugene

OR

Looking over the list, I find a few stories hidden between the numbers. The first is the impact of last year’s acquisitions and mergers. In 2009, Pyramid and Magic Hat were ranked 5th and 8th respectively. That year they also merged to form Independent Brewers United (IBU). IBU comes in 6th on this list, behind Deschutes, who Pyramid alone had outsold just last year. The ranking comes not as a result of lower production, but due to newly-formed IBU’s acquisition by North American Breweries (Genesee, Labatt USA). NAB, not considered a craft brewery by the Brewers Association, received the credit for all of IBU’s post acquisition production, five months in total. The relocated IBU totals, paired with increases from NAB’s other acquisitions and partnerships, allowed the company to rise two spots in the overall, jumping both Spoetzl (Shiner) and Craft Brewers Alliance (Redhook, Widmer), who added Kona during the same period. And Long Trail, who sat at 25th in ’09, rocketed up twelve positions on the list after acquiring Otter Creek/Wolaver’s last year.

The next thing that stands out is the production increases made by breweries in the middle of the list. While the Brewers Association does not provide numbers to accompany it ranking, a little precision internetting can turn up a wealth of information. Lagunitas maxed out its production capabilities last year, producing over 100,000 barrels and running 24/7 to keep up with demand. This translates to a nine spot boost in the ranking, the largest of any company that was not part of a merger or acquisition. And with a $9.5 million dollar brewery expansion on the horizon, I expect Lagunitas will continue its rise through the ranks. Several breweries that recently finished expanding, including Dogfish Head and Oskar Blues, also saw significant increases in their ranking. Eight breweries in all moved up at least five positions this year, Stevens Point, Blue Point, North Coast and Bear Republic rounding out those already mentioned.

Finally, we come to Eugene’s very own Ninkasi, who squeaked onto this year’s list in the 50th position. While cracking the top 50 is a momentous achievement, I don’t expect the increasingly ubiquitous N to stay near the bottom for long. According to the OLCC’s production totals for 2010, Bridgeport, who now sits at 34th, only out-produced Ninkasi by 2,300 barrels. The reason for the disparity in the ranking is the difference between the way between sale volume and production are calculated. Sales volume includes portions of production from both the previous and current periods. Since Ninkasi’s massive build-out occurred last year, the resulting production increase won’t be fully realized until the ’11 report is released next April. It would not surprise me in the least to see Ninkasi join Bridgeport near the middle of the pack next year.

In any case, it’s time to get back to the Timbers’ routing of Chicago (sorry Matt). If you’re doing the same, I’m going to assume you already have a beer in hand. Why not raise it high and toast Oregon’s newest member of the Craft Brewing Top 50?

]]>http://eugenedailynews.com/2011/04/craft-beer-drinkers-meet-your-new-top-50/feed/0Redhook’s New Look + Q&A with Robert Rentschhttp://eugenedailynews.com/2011/03/redhook%e2%80%99s-new-look-qa-with-robert-rentsch/
http://eugenedailynews.com/2011/03/redhook%e2%80%99s-new-look-qa-with-robert-rentsch/#commentsSat, 26 Mar 2011 15:06:01 +0000http://eugenedailynews.com/?p=4252New bottles, new packaging, cans and new beer. I had an opportunity to pass along some questions to Robert Rentsch, Redhook’s Brand Manager, about the brewery’s 30th Anniversary and its recent changes.]]>

Redhook’s New Look + Q&A with Robert Rentsch

by Kevin @ beerandcoding.com

Redhook and I have always had an interesting bond. Perhaps this is due to the brewery’s conception coinciding with my own, or its ESB being an early and frequent participant in my foray into craft beer. No matter the reason, we have both arrived at the precipice of 30. And while it appears I have regressed a bit as of late, once again letting my hair grow long and spending all too much time toiling away in the latest Pokemon game, Redhook is all eyes forward. 30 years is a huge achievement for a modern craft brewery and Redhook is using its pearl anniversary as an opportunity to do some major brand re-imaging.

New bottles, new packaging, cans and new beer. I had an opportunity to pass along some questions to Robert Rentsch, Redhook’s Brand Manager, about the brewery’s 30th Anniversary and its recent changes.

Q: 30 years in craft brewing is a huge milestone. Does Redhook have any parties or events planned to celebrate the special occasion?

A: We’ll be celebrating all year long! But more specifically we are planning BIG birthday parties at both of our brewery locations (Woodinville, WA and Portsmouth, NH) for later this summer. Stay tuned for details.

Q: Redhook’s press release mentions that the new packaging makes the beer easy to spot on the aisle. Is the high-contrast packaging and labels a response to customer concern that products did not stick out enough on store shelves?

A: This change is more about doing what feels right for Redhook, and going back to our core values and roots of making great beer and having fun doing it. Part of this is packaging that is more straightforward and simple with no pretensions.

(I wouldn’t be surprised to see more breweries make the change to highly visible, minimalistic, “Ninkasi-style” packaging as the battle for shelf space intensifies.)

Q:“Floral notes and mouthfeel?? Hey, we’re just drinking beer here.” While I completely agree with this statement, I’m sure it will cause a beer geek or two to wince. Can you explain or elaborate on this idea?

A: There seems to be a movement within the craft beer community where a lot of breweries are trying to ‘out craft’ each other. Redhook isn’t about that. Of course we’re brewing great beer, but we’re just as interested in having a great time. Redhook is about pure and simple enjoyment and lack of pretense.

(Bill’s Beer Review Generator does a great job illustrating my pet peeve with the way people describe beer. I feel it makes the culture appear elitist and inaccessible. And while I enjoy the practice of dissecting a beer with like company, I have come to the understanding that most of my friends would prefer I just quiet myself by drinking it.

As an aside, I wonder if this attitude is the beginning of the craft beer equivalent of Nouvelle cuisine. Barrel-aging, exotic ingredients and multiple strains of yeast and bacteria have become the norm. Maybe we are on the cusp of a shift back to stripped-down beers, brewed to showcase a flavorful hop or malt. Nouvelle Biere.)

Q: Redhook Pilsner is being released next week (Mar. 21st.). Is this a return of last summer’s Rope Swing, or an entirely new lager? And will Redhook Pilsner be a seasonal release, or an addition to the year-round line-up?

A: Pilsner is a return of Rope Swing and will be a part of Redhook’s year-round line-up.

Q: Speaking of lagers, last year’s Rope Swing was a first for the brewery. Is there a reason it took Redhook nearly 29 years to release a bottom-fermented beer? Will we see more lagers in the future?

A: Redhook has actually experimented with Lagers in the past and many years ago produced a small run of Pilsner that was sold in our pubs and in draught.

Q: Next month, Copperhook is being released in cans. What was the reasoning for choosing Copperhook over the flagship ESB as the Redhook’s first canned beer? If a success, can we expect other Redhook beers to follow?

A: Copperhook is real crowd–pleaser. It’s the perfect balance of smooth, rich, malty flavor you’d expect from a craft brew with a lighter body and hop profile that make it a perfect “session” beer for all the outdoor pursuits and occasions where it will be enjoyed.

(We may need the fact checkers for this one, but as far as I know, Redhook is the first craft brewery to go can with something other than their flagship beer. It will be interesting to see how this is received.)

Q: While other craft breweries have been consolidating their core offerings, Redhook is expanding its line-up. What has allowed for this to happen and can we expect further changes to Redhook’s line-up in 2011? And any information you care to share about Redhook’s 2011 Limited Releases?

A: We’ll still have 4 core year round offerings. ESB, Long Hammer IPA, Copperhook, and Pilsner. We will continue to release Seasonals, as well as an upcoming series of exciting limited run beers.

(I was under the impression that Redhook added both Blonde and Big Ballard to its year-round line-up last year.)

Press Release:

Redhook Unveils New Look for 30th Birthday

Craft beer pioneer goes back to its roots to ring in new decade

Woodinville, Wash. – March 14, 2011. This month, Redhook Brewery (www.redhook.com) , one of the nation’s founding domestic craft brewers, is celebrating its 30th birthday by unveiling a new look, including bottles, labels, bottle caps and packaging.

The new look is all part of Redhook’s effort to get back to its roots. “There seems to be a movement within the craft beer community where a lot of breweries are trying to ‘out craft’ each other,” said Robert Rentsch, brand manager of Redhook Brewery. “Redhook isn’t about that. Of course we’re brewing great beer, but we’re just as interested in having a great time. We think our new look reflects our personality well.”

The Beginning

Just like other pioneering brands such as Starbucks and Microsoft, Redhook was born out of the energy and spirit of the 80’s. In 1981, founders Paul Shipman and Gordon Bowker (who happened to be a co-founder of Starbucks) thought the people of Seattle deserved their own beer; one that offered more flavor than the lighter tasting domestics and imports that were available at the time.

Redhook started brewing beer out of a converted transmission shop in Seattle’s Ballard neighborhood. After achieving local success with Ballard Bitter (known today as Long Hammer IPA) and ESB, Redhook became the first nationally distributed craft beer brand. Then came the identity crisis. “We realized we weren’t celebrating the big personality that Redhook is in the way it deserved to be celebrated,” said Rentsch.

The Evolution

After some soul-searching over a few beers, Redhook decided it needed its exterior to match its personality. The new look includes:

· Packaging/Labels: Easy-to-spot labels and packaging across all Redhook beers helps consumers quickly grab and go in the beer aisle. Every beer style is identified by a unique color scheme and Redhook’s simple beer-o-meter on the side helps pick between refreshing, smooth, bold, or dark.

· Bottle/Bottle Caps: To go back to basics, Redhook created a no-frills bottle, while the bottle caps all depict iconic images and phrases of Redhook’s colorful 30-year history, so you can drink while you reminisce. Genius.

]]>http://eugenedailynews.com/2011/03/redhook%e2%80%99s-new-look-qa-with-robert-rentsch/feed/0Eugene Beer Week is Cominghttp://eugenedailynews.com/2011/03/eugene-beer-week-is-coming-%c2%ab-beer-and-coding-in-eugene/
http://eugenedailynews.com/2011/03/eugene-beer-week-is-coming-%c2%ab-beer-and-coding-in-eugene/#commentsMon, 14 Mar 2011 13:13:34 +0000http://eugenedailynews.com/?p=3520That’s right kids, in a couple months lil’ Eugene will play host to its first Beer Week! 16 Tons co-owner Mike Coplin has been hard at work organizing the inaugural beer week, which promises to be 7 days of craft events, anchored by the Annual Sasquatch Brewfest.]]>

Eugene Beer Week is Coming

That’s right kids, in a couple months lil’ Eugene will play host to its first Beer Week! 16 Tons co-owner Mike Coplin has been hard at work organizing the inaugural beer week, which promises to be 7 days of craft events, anchored by the Annual Sasquatch Brewfest.

Release:

Eugene Hosts Its Own Beer Week May 2nd-May 8th.

Eugene, Oregon, March 9th, 2011

From May 2nd to May 8th, Eugene Oregon will host its first annual beer week. Eugene Beer Week will celebrate craft beer culture in the Willamette Valley.

The US craft brewing industry has been growing steadily and cities across the country have been organizing beer celebrations to promote the industry. These beer weeks include a great number of beer tastings, brewers dinners and other events celebrating craft beer. Breweries, retailers, bars, restaurants and beer writers participate in beer weeks by helping bring greater awareness to a region’s craft beers. Cities such as Seattle, Philadelphia, San Francisco and Chicago all boast successful beer weeks.

Eugene Beer Week’s objective is to bring a greater awareness of craft beer in the Willamette Valley. They aim to accomplish this goal by providing a website that beer drinkers can peruse and locate beer related events taking place during the week. Eugenebeerweek.org will also provide a forum for businesses to promote their beer week efforts. Eugene Beer Week culminates with the Sasquatch Beer Festival that celebrates the life of one of Eugene’s former brewers, Glen Falconer.

So, I was all set to brew a strong ESB yesterday, finishing out my series of beers using the Timothy Taylor (Wyeast 1469) strain of yeast. But while waiting my turn to use the grain room at the homebrew shop, I got a wild hair. Not sure if I was channeling Mike, who recently brewed a Tart Heather Gruit, or just feeling my Scottish roots a little more than usual. Hell, it could have been that I was standing in front of the spice/herb rack and I just happen to be a notorious impulse shopper. In any case, I arrived at the homebrew store with and ESB recipe and left with all the ingredients for a Heather Ale.

Since this was a spur of the moment brew, I didn’t have time to work out a recipe beforehand. The grainbill was an on-the-fly attempt to emulate the honey sweetness and smooth creamy body of Fraoch, the benchmark Heather Ale. The golden naked oats seemed like a great choice, since they provide both a light sweet flavor and a creamy body. I also mashed a few degrees higher than usual. The residual sugars should also help maintain both sweetness and body.

The Fraoch

The smoked malt is a bit of a rogue (adjective, not brewery) ingredient. To me, the sweet, hay-like aroma of heather is almost savory. My thinking was that a touch of smoked malt would enhance this perception. I chose the Briess cherry wood smoked malt over a traditional German rauchmalt. The Briess malt has an intense, almost hickory flavor and is far sweeter than its European counterpart.

As far as brewing, the only deviation from the recipe above was the inclusion of 7oz of palm sugar. I attempted to track down some heather honey, but after stopping at two specialty markets and coming up empty, I decided to boost the gravity with something I already had on hand. The 2oz of heather soaked up a surprising amount of wort, so I ended up with about 4.75 gallons at 1.053.

The Heather Ale was drained directly onto the cake from my English Brown Ale, which was moved to secondary while the knockout heather was steeping. This is only the second time I’ve transferred directly onto an existing cake. Usually, I retain only a small amount of slurry for repitching, but with my yeast already on its 4th generation, I figured a full cake couldn’t hurt.

The beer was very fragrant going into the fermenter and I’m hoping much of the aroma is retained in the finished product. The 2oz of heather was a complete guess on my part. Most of the recipes I’ve seen for heather ales use fresh tips and measure in volume, not weight. I made sure to purchase enough heather that if need be, I can dry-herb in secondary.

Last night, my friend (and Ninkasi cellar man) Louie and I brewed the latest beer in my series of session strength ales; an English Brown. For those of you who live and die by style guidelines, yes, it was a conscious decision to omit the Northern/Southern prefix. With the dark crystal malts of a London-style Brown and the nutty toasted grains of a Northern, my geographically challenged brown beer falls somewhere between the two recognized styles.

As with my British-ish Bitter, the brew session was plagued by high winds, resulting in a huge amount of evaporation. 6.5 gallons of wort went into the kettle, 4 survived to the fermenter. I thought about leaving the considerable stronger wort at 1.054, but decided to top off the fermenter and put myself back into the session range. 3 quarts of water were added, giving us a final volume of 4.75 gallons at 1.046. That works out to a completely acceptable 67% efficiency.

The ale received about a pint of 3rd gen Timothy Taylor (Wyeast 1469) yeast slurry, harvested from the British-ish Bitter. Within a few hours, the airlock was bubbling away and a thin krausen had formed. Now that the fermenter is generating heat, it has been moved to the conditioning closet where bottles of my bitter are struggling to carb at a less than optimal temperature.

I am planning on brewing once more with the yeast before dumping it and starting over with a new gen 2 start. I haven’t decided yet if I want to go for a forth session ale, or take advantage of the entire cake for an English Strong Ale or Barleywine. Or perhaps, in my typical day-late fashion, I will start a Winter Warmer that should be ready to drink some time in late spring. Suggestions?

While on vacation, two oh-so-long weeks ago, my brother came over and helped me brew a Bitter, my second session beer using Wyeast’s 1469 West Yorkshire (Timothy Taylor) strain. The recipe was going to be a straightforward English-style Bitter, but after smelling some of the 2010 harvest Amarillo hops, I couldn’t help but work them in. Besides, aren’t citrusy American hops the big thing in Britain right now?

British-ish Bitter

Batch Size: 5.0 gallons

Boil Volume: 6.5 gallons

7 lb Thomas Fawcett Maris Otter (80%)

14 oz Demerara Sugar (10%)

8 oz British Crystal 50-60 (5.7%)

6 oz Wheat Malt (4.3%)

1.0 oz Goldings (4.5 AA%) @ 60

0.5 oz Goldings (4.5 AA%) @ 15

0.5 oz Amarillo (11.2 AA%) @ 15

0.5 oz Goldings (4.5 AA%) @ Flame Out, steeped for 20 minutes

0.5 oz Amarillo (11.2 AA%) @ Flame Out, steeped for 20 minutes

1.0 oz Amarillo (11.2 AA%) @ Dry hopped for 7 days

1 qt starter of Wyeast 1469 – West Yorkshire (Timothy Taylor)

Estimated Efficiency: 68%

Estimated Attenuation 75%

Estimated OG: 1.046

Estimated FG: 1.012

Estimated ABV: 4.4%

Estimated IBU: 35

Estimated SRM: 7

Mash @ 152º(F) for 1 hour

Ferment @ 68º(F)

This was the first brew session using both my new outdoor propane setup and my new wort chiller. This new setup cut in half the time it took to heat my mash and sparge water. It also brought the wort to a boil much quicker. The wort chiller, 25′ of ½” copper, was able to bring my wort from a boil to 180º(F) in under a minute. After allowing my flameout hops to steep, it took another 3-4 minutes to get the wort down to 70º(F). It was a good thing I had another set of hand helping me out, as the rhythm I have developed over many brew sessions was completely destroyed by my new efficiency. All afternoon it felt like I was playing catch up.

It was pretty windy during the brew session, so I lost a little more volume to evaporation than usual. I ended up collecting 4.75 gallons of 1.048 wort. The 1 quart starter went to work immediately and the beer was down to 1.012 after just 3 days. I let the beer sit a full two weeks in primary, the gravity stabilizing at 1.008. What was supposed to be a 4.4% session brew, ended up around 5.2%. Wyeast lists the attenuation range of the West Yorkshire yeast as 67-71%, but both times I have worked with it, it has pushed 80%. Luckily, this particular strain does a great job of giving the impression of a full-bodied beer, despite a low finishing gravity.

The beer was racked to secondary and dry hopped this evening, the yeast cake saved for a British Brown scheduled for later this week. Now I just need to come up with another 50 or so clean bottles by next week. Time to start drinking…or finally step up and start kegging.

The recipe for a Belgian strong dark ale has been kicking around in the back of my cranium for a while now. Last week I decided to get the ball rolling and started culturing up a big pitch of Westmalle yeast. Instead of building a starter, I brewed a low ABV Belgian pale whose cake will be used for the BSDA.

Being a utility brew of sorts, I figured this would be a good opportunity to do some experimenting with ingredients. I decided to add some flaked triticale to the grainbill, a wheat-rye hybrid. I also worked up several different blends of spices that I thought would accentuate the spicy grain and phenolic Westmalle yeast. After making teas and sampling each blend I settled on a mixture of coriander, cardamom, chamomile and black pepper.

Belgian Triticale Pale

Batch Size: 4.5 gallons

Boil Volume: 5.5 gallons

6 lb (68.6%)

1 lb Dark Munich (20L) (11.4%)

1 lb Flaked Triticale (11.4%)

8 oz Honey Malt (5.7%)

4 oz Palm Sugar (2.9%)

1.0 oz Willamette (4.8 AA%) @ First Wort Hop

1.0 oz Willamette (4.8 AA%) @ 10

11 gm Coriander @ Flame Out

1 gm Chamomile @ Flame Out

1 gm Cardamom @ Flame Out

1.5 gm Black Pepper @ Flame Out

1 qt starter of Wyeast 3787 – Trappist High Gravity (Westmalle)

Estimated Efficiency: 68%

Estimated Attenuation 80%

Estimated OG: 1.048

Estimated FG: 1.010

Estimated ABV: 4.9%

Estimated IBU: 22

Estimated SRM: 7

Mash @ 152(F) for 1 hour

Ferment @ 66(F)

All spices were crushed coarsely and added at flame out. The beer was cooled quickly to 180(F) then left for 20 minutes while the spices steeped. I ended up overshooting my target volume, collecting 4.75 gallons of slightly lighter 1.044 wort.

When using the Westmalle strain, I like to hold the fermentation temperature at 66(F) for the first 3 days, then let it free rise until finished. I’ve found that this schedule allows the esters and phenols to develop, but keeps them from being harsh and overpowering. Unfortunately, this time around, the near freezing temperature of my garage cooled the beer far too quickly.

When I checked on the brew 12 hours after pitching, the temperature was down to 56(F). I moved the fermentor indoors and, over the next 48 hours, raised the temperature to 62(F). A krausen finally formed between days 2 and 3, but it was very thin and dense. On day 4 there were still no visible signs of airlock activity, so I took a hydrometer reading to get a better idea of what was going on inside the mysterious bucket. The gravity was down to 1.014, but the beer smelled strongly of sulphur. I have never had this issue before, but the Westmalle strain did throw a lot of sulphur on Jesse when he used it to ferment a batch of Apfel Wine.

Since 62(F) was the highest I could get the beer, I purchased a heating pad and used it to slowly raise the temperature to 72(F) over the next 4 days. Another reading on day 10, revealed that the beer had reached its target gravity of 1.010. And more importantly, the sulphur smell was completely gone.

Currently the chamomile is coming through a little strong, but I had the same issue with my Wit early on and the sharpness mellowed quickly. The rest of the spices are less easy to identify, adding subtle, almost perfumy complexity. The triticale is also subtle, contributing a light spiciness and grainy flavor to the beer. Although, as I’ve said before, I have a hard time picking up rye unless I am being beaten about the head with it. So, I may have to leave the final triticale opinions to those who possess a more properly tuned tongue than I.